The Fabric On These Adidas Shoes Will Decompose In Your Sink

Adidas has unveiled a new shoe featuring biodegradable fabric that’s designed to break down within hours of its disposal using a water and enzyme solution. The one catch: the design appears to be attached to a foam sole ― suggesting that a large portion of the shoe would still end up in a landfill. Adidas’ Futurecraft Biofabric was presented at last week’s Biofabricate conference in New York. The unique design features a synthetic spider silk called Biosteel that is 100 percent biodegradable, according to the shoemaker. The sneaker, which touts itself as the first biodegradable shoe of its kind, is currently just a prototype but the company expects it to become a commercial product by next year, Wired reported. According to Gizmodo, users simply place the shoes in water and add a digestion enzyme called proteinase that will cause the protein-based yarn to decompose within 36 hours.  “This process is 100% natural,” an Adidas spokesperson told the news site. “The shoe would not dissolve if worn in rainy weather conditions, for example, as the presence of proteinase is all important to the process.” It’s not clear what would become of the sole, however. The shoe appears to feature Adidas’ Ultra Boost outsole, which according to Adidas’ website is composed of elastic foam particles called thermoplastic polyurethane or TPU. That’s great if you enjoy a nice spring in your step, but its union w...
Source: Science - The Huffington Post - Category: Science Source Type: news